Course Summary

The Law School Preparation programme combines sessions devoted to the process of applying to law school with sessions in which students will learn about an aspect of law and then debate it.

This course will introduce students to law in the UK, including criminal law, and the laws of tort, contract employment and human rights. It will equip students with a variety of logic and argumentation skills and techniques that will enable them to construct convincing arguments both in essays and in oral debate, and will familiarise students with the entry requirements to study Law at UK Universities.

The Oxford Royale Academy experience

Where could Law School Preparation lead you?

Why choose Law School Preparation for 16-18 years?

From films like ‘Legally Blonde’ to bizarre urban myths passed around on student forums, it is very easy to get a false impression of what the undergraduate study of law consists of, and, more generally, what life at law school is actually like. Law School Preparation will provide students with an introduction to the legal concepts that they will encounter, such as Business Law, Contract Law and Criminal Law, and an impression of how these topics are taught in an undergraduate setting.

This means that students who have taken the Law School Preparation course will be able to approach applications to law school from a position of greater understanding. Additionally, having become acclimatised to the way law is studied at university, they will be ready to work in the right way from their first day at law school, gaining a head-start over peers who may still be settling in.

How will Law School Preparation help me?

During your time on the Law School Preparation course, you’ll be taking part in discussion and debate on a daily basis, giving you practice in airing your views in front of an audience of your peers and a qualified teacher, which will increase your confidence and skills in public speaking. You’ll have the chance to take part in a mock interview to hone interview-specific skills, too, which will also give you valuable experience of the style of questions you can expect from a law school interview. What’s more, the material you will cover on the course will be a helpful source of information for interview discussions, both in terms of the detail of the law that you will cover and in terms of broader issues, such as the impact of ethical dilemmas on the law and the way the law interacts with different ethical systems.

The LNAT is an aptitude test used by eight of the best UK universities in order to differentiate between top candidates, particularly in the assessment of logical reasoning skills and reading comprehension. Universities requiring the LNAT include Birmingham, Bristol, Durham, Glasgow, King’s College London, Nottingham, Oxford and University College London. With candidates’ average scores rising every year, preparing well for this test is becoming ever more important. This course helps students improve their LNAT scores by talking through what the test requires, looking at sample questions and practising under exam conditions, so that when students come to take the LNAT for real, they will be familiar and comfortable with its requirements, and thus ready to do well.

While most universities don’t interview for law, it’s important to be properly prepared if you’re applying to those that do – and even if you’re not, interview skills will be vital when you graduate and enter the competitive world of applying to law firms for a training contract.

For non-UK applicants, the UCAS university application system can be very confusing. Guidance on which combination of universities to apply to and how to write a good personal statement can vary widely, and it can be hard to tell when it is reliable and when not. Our expert teachers know what it takes to get accepted at law school through the UCAS system, and you can be sure that their advice will stand you in good stead when you begin the application process.

One aspect of the Law School Preparation course is working on your personal statement. The personal statement is often considered the most challenging part of the UCAS application process. It’s a 40-line statement, written by the student, laying out why they want to study their chosen course and what makes them suited to it – a task that many students find very hard to achieve. On the Law School Preparation course, you’ll learn what makes a good personal statement, have the opportunity to read successful personal statements and draft your own personal statement under our teachers’ guidance.

UCAS also allows students to apply to only five universities per application cycle, which means that the universities students apply to must be chosen carefully. Again, our teachers will be able to advise students on which courses at which universities might suit them best, and which they would be best off targeting given their academic performance and their interests. This helps students avoid ‘wasting’ a UCAS space on a university that would not be right for them, so that they apply to five universities that they are right for and that are right for them, maximising their chances of success.

Is this course for me?

If you have always dreamed of entering a career in law, but are unsure whether you would be suited to it, then this course is for you.

Topics covered

Students will focus on and practise the skills necessary in a good law school and law firm interview. They are asked to consider different types of questions they might be asked in interviews, and how best to tackle them. They learn how to write a good legal essay and increase their commercial awareness in order to apply for relevant jobs and internships in the legal sector.

Students are also guided through the process of writing a strong personal statement. Over the two weeks they draft their own statement in order to have a first or second draft of their statement ready by the time they leave ORA.

In addition, students look at the LNAT (National Admissions Test for Law), which is used by many universities to assess applicants. Students are introduced to the most important skills necessary to tackle the essay section of the test. They also look at the types of multiple choice questions asked on the exam, and get a chance to answer them under timed conditions.

A particular highlight for our students is witnessing a criminal trial in London to experience advocacy first-hand and to gain a sense of what it is like to speak in court. Students will also get a chance to work in groups on a moot, which is an oral presentation of a legal argument against an opponent in the presence of a judge. Students will be given a set of facts, and research and prepare an argument on behalf of their (fictional) clients. Through the exercise students will practise their speech-writing and advocacy skills. The programme ends with a mock trial in which all students will play different roles.

What will you get out of the Law School Preparation course?

By the end of the course students will have gained an insight into what constitutes a strong application to study law at a UK university, developed and practised their critical thinking and logical reasoning skills, and improved their interview technique and grown in confidence in their presentation skills.

They will have gained an understanding of contract, commercial and business law in the UK, strengthened their public speaking and debating skills, and even developed their confidence in presenting their arguments in a range of different contexts.

Welcome to the City of Oxford - your home this summer

Oxford is a city like no other, combining startlingly beautiful architecture with a buzzing, modern city centre, with superb shopping, restaurants, cafés and more. With the colleges of Oxford University at its heart, some almost 800 years old, it is a city steeped in history and academia.

Students on Oxford Royale's Oxford summer courses will have the chance to live, dine and study in this stunning city, exploring all of its major sites and discovering its hidden secrets. Through both organised trips to key landmarks and free time in the evenings, students will become acquainted with all that Oxford has to offer.

As students walk the cobbled streets and gaze up at the spires, gargoyles and honey-coloured stone buildings, they will be walking in the footsteps of some of the most influential figures in history, including prime ministers, presidents, nobel prize-winning scientists, authors and more.

Sample Timetable

Useful information for students & parents

Accommodation

Students will be accommodated in comfortable single or twin rooms depending on their allocated college - please contact our registrations team if you would like more information. Twin rooms are strictly between students of the same gender, and males/females are separated by corridoor and/or staircase. Accommodation is the standard accommodation for university undergraduates who study at the university, so students are able to get a flavour for what being an undergraduate at the university might be like. Bathrooms are typically shared between students of the same gender, though in some cases en-suite facilities are available.

Pastoral care & student welfare

The programme is overseen by the Programme Director, who implements the day-to-day running of the programme. The Director is assisted by a team of Counsellors who very often are current members of the University of Oxford or University of Cambridge. The Counsellors ensure that students are looked after pastorally, culturally and socially during their programme. Students are able to talk informally and frankly to the Counsellors in order to raise concerns or to discuss university applications. Each campus has members of residential staff who live in the college throughout the programme and are able to assist students at any time of the day or night.

Eligibility & pre-requisites

Students on this course:

Must conform to our age policy.

Must be fluent or near-fluent English language speakers – if you are unsure whether your English level is suitable for this programme, please contact our Registrations Team on admin@oxford-royale.co.uk and they will be able to assist you.

Must be able to fulfil the basic requirements of the programme, in terms of attendance at lessons, meals and events. Please contact our Registrations Team for more detailed information.

Oxford Royale Academy is a part of Oxford Programs Limited, UK company number 6045196. The company contracts with institutions including Oxford University for the use of their facilities and also contracts with tutors from those institutions but does not operate under the aegis of Oxford University.